At Last! “Values” Defined

It’s been a puzzlement. What do the Repubs mean when they vote for “values”? Finally, Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) has explained it all to us. Speaking on behalf of Senator Sessions, Mike Brumas is quoted in an article in today’s New York Times as saying that the Republicans are outraged over Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) reporting he warned Prez Bush it would be unlikely opponents of abortion would be confirmed for the Supreme Court. Brumas went on to say, “Some of them are saying things like they voted for values on Tuesday and this is a slap in the face.'' So now we know...having ”values” means being anti-abortion. At least that simplifies things. President Bush does not need to worry that his lying, cheating deceptive behavior during his first term will be seen as a blot on his value system. He’s anti-abortion and that is all it takes to have far-right Republican values. It also makes the Democrats job easier. Since having values really means being anti-abortion, the Dems need only seriously address pro-choice. They can let the Repubs chase their own tails about having a one-commandment value system. Not even one week after the election, and two months before President-elect Bush is inaugurated, the Republicans have made it clear they don’t want to hear about real issues. Their strategy continues to be to keep the public eye on non-issues and away from the real problems facing the administration and the country. Unfortunately for the BushMen, reality keeps intruding. We’re still in Iraq with no end in sight. US soldiers are dying. Health care is a tangled web. Bush has empowered the drug companies to rule over doctors. American jobs have gone overseas. The Patriot Act lets the government trample on our civil liberties. And one huge problem is that although the President boasted he has political capital and intends to spend it, he has no actual money in the till. He has squandered all the real bucks on his self-aggrandizing war in Iraq. Where is the money that needs to be spent on anti-terrorism? Flow-charts and colored lights haven't been too effective. The President says he won’t raise taxes. The deficit bill is at $418,000,000,000 and we know our children and grandchildren have been sold out in order to pay it. Where is the money coming from to run the country and god forbid! to defend us against a real enemy? No, I don’t think the far-right’s apocalyptic frenzy over abortion and gay people is much of a diversion from the actual mess we are in. And not the least of our problems is the Bush-led assault on the very existence of the United States and the Republic for which it stands.